


A Drink and A Think

by stormoftara



Category: Thrilling Intent (Web Series)
Genre: Drinking, F/M, I'm terrible at titles, Maybe some angst, a massage is given, but not really, mostly fluffy stuff, thog is generally happy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-01
Updated: 2017-03-01
Packaged: 2018-09-27 16:57:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10035242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stormoftara/pseuds/stormoftara
Summary: Thog is drinking alone at the bar, when Ashe comes to join him. Together they have a drink, and when Ashe believes Thog is stressed out, she begins to give him a massage.





	

It was a quiet night at the bar, everyone was either out or sleeping already. It'd been like this for awhile now, the chaos that had ensued after everyone had moved to the Shrouded Isles had settled. Thog pondered upon the quietness, the ice cubes in his whiskey clinking against each other as he lifted the glass for another sip. He wasn't used to this calm atmosphere, and he certainly didn't want things to be like this all the time, but it was nice every once in awhile.

Behind him, he heard the door creak open and soft footsteps across the so recently varnished floor. Someone took a seat next to him. Thog turned his head slightly to see Ashe grinning at him. “Hey,” Thog said, tipping his glass in her direction.

“Good evening Thog,” Ashe said cheerfully. She looked at the bar in front of Thog, which was covered in papers and envelopes. “Making new contracts, are we?”

Thog gave a slight chuckle. “Not exactly. Oh yeah, there is something I've been meaning to give you.” Thog stood up and rounded the bar, going to the other side.

“I hope it's not paperwork.” Ashe said, leaning onto the bar, watching as Thog unlocked a nearby chest.

“No, this is something Kyr made.” Thog rustled through the chest and brought out a bottle.

“Kyr?” Ashe said as she looked closely at the bottle. “By the gods, is that fog apple extract?”

“Yup. He thought you'd like some, he made up a bunch for his sword.” Thog’s eye twitched slightly thinking about the monstrous sword. He placed the bottle on the bar in front of her, and went back to his seat.

“That was very thoughtful of him. I'll have to thank him next time I see him.” Ashe smiled, taking the bottle and reaching over the bar to grab a glass. She poured a bit for herself, a thin mist emerging from the glass. Thog felt like he was getting drunk just off the smell alone.

Ashe took a sip, and Thog went back to looking over the letters he had in front of him. It was hard to concentrate, especially when Ashe let out a “Gods, this is heavenly.” 

Thog had begun opening another letter when he felt Ashe’s voice close to his ear, “So what are you doing?”

Her breath was on his neck, tickling him slightly, sending a shiver down his spine. He tensed up, not used to have Ashe so close to him. He tried to not let it show as he said, “These are just some request letters, you know, for adventuring.”

“Oh, anything good?” Ashe leaned in closer to look at the letters, her body gently pressing against Thog. At her touch Thog tensed up even more. “Thog, are you stressed out? You feel so tense.”

Thog could barely mumble out a reply, “No, no, everything’s fine.”

Ashe reached over Thog to pick up one of the letters. He could smell her earthy scent as she did. She had a very distinct aroma, smelling very much like nature itself, the trees, the flowers, and the dirt. “A zombie well?” Ashe looked at one of the letters and chuckled. She put a hand on Thog’s back, “Why don't they just cover the well up? I mean how many zombies could even fit in one well?”

Thog was so tense now he was sure he'd be sore in the morning. “Apparently a lot. I wonder how they all got down there.”

“Maybe they fell in? I don't think zombies are particularly smart.” Ashe took another sip from her glass, her hand still on Thog’s back. “You are so tense!” Ashe declared, putting her drink back down.

“Guess I'm just soooo stressed out deciding what job to take next.” Thog joked, hoping Ashe couldn't hear the anxiety in his voice. He picked up his own glass and took a long sip. The whiskey burned his throat almost pleasantly.

Ashe stood up, and in a quick motion she was behind Thog. “Here, let me give you a massage, since you are so stressed out.” She said with only the slightest bit of sarcasm.

Thog just sat silently as Ashe put both her hands on his shoulders. His mind was running wild however. Perhaps it wasn't the best idea to give Ashe that drink? She wasn't acting drunk, but she wasn't normally this touchy-feely, at least not with him.

Ashe’s hands felt softer than he imagined. Her hands were wrapping around his shoulders, her thumbs pressing into the base of his neck in circular motions. Despite himself, he could feel himself relaxing slightly. Her hands slowly started to work their way down, kneeding his sore muscles. She was strong, her fingers pushing hard into his back, working through the many years of knots.

She paused for a moment, leaning into his back. She grabbed her drink and took a sip. Thog could feel her weight on his back, and for someone so strong she felt surprisingly light. She began to speak, so close to his ear again, sending a shudder down his spine. “You know, it might be easier if you took your shirt off.”

Thog nearly froze in place. It's wasn't like he hadn't taken his shirt off in front of Ashe about a dozen times before, but doing it now, felt much more intimate. Thog took a deep sip of his whiskey, finally draining the cup, leaving behind only the half melted ice cubes. There wasn't a problem here, right? It was just him taking off his shirt in front of his friend, just so she could give him a massage. Nothing strange about that, no reason to get flustered.

“Sure,” Thog said quickly unbuttoning his shirt in a practiced motion, he was rather good at quickly removing it. He slid it off and placed it on the bar. 

Ashe’s warm hands were on his back again. She traced her fingers over the many scars that littered his back. The small ones, the worrying large ones, she traced each one with her hands without saying a word about them. Thog couldn't help but to think more and more how terrible of an idea all of this was. He needed more whiskey. Without moving too much, he reached over the bar to grab a bottle and poured it for himself.

Ashe started to massage his back again, apparently done exploring his scars. She started to hum to herself as she did so, stopping only to take sips from her glass. She seemed to be in a good mood at least, Thog noted. She was a happy drunk, which was preferable to a sad drunk. Thog wasn't sure he could handle a sad Ashe on his own. Sudden thoughts of Ashe silently sobbing gripped his heart. That was something he'd never want to see.

“So, Thog, can I ask you something, uh, personal?” Ashe continued her massage, but had leaned in close to Thog again, as her hands worked at his lower back.

“You know I don't like talking about personal stuff.” He replied a bit stiffly.

“Oh, I'm more than aware. It's just, I'm worried about you.” Her voice was soft, and washed over Thog. He wasn't sure he had ever heard Ashe like that before.

“I can assure you that there is nothing to worry about. I'm doing just great. I haven't been this happy in a long time.” Thog smiled to reassure her, despite the fact she couldn't see him.

“That's good. I was afraid that you were feeling guilty, you know what with that whole incident with the harpy.” Ashe let out a short laugh, “I mean wind siren.”

Thog wasn't sure how to respond. Maybe he did feel guilty back then. He had done a lot of wrong in his life, the most recent incidents running through his mind. He had sold Markus, Gregor, and Ashe into slavery. At that moment he had hardly felt any guilt for his actions, after all the pay was good. Then, he had basically killed them all when he sent them after the death god. Without a thought to their safety, he had run off with the life preservers as Charoth destroyed his boat. He could still recall how he had barely felt anything when he saw their dead bodies smashed on the beach. How it wasn't until they had come back to life that he felt the smallest pang of guilt. How worst of all, everyone had forgiven him for his actions. 

He didn't deserve that forgiveness. He knew it, but he had been working hard to change that fact. He was doing everything in his power to protect the group, to keep them happy. He had given Ashe that money so she could find herself when she had run away to the Ban. He had tried his best to protect everyone when fighting the “harpy”. He was changing little by little, so he could be free of the heavy burden of guilt that weighed so heavily on his shoulders. 

Thog of course said none of this. He took a swig of whiskey and replied, “I feel great honestly. So let's not talk about that again, alright?” He turned his head as far back as he could to smile at Ashe. She grinned back.

“Are you gonna put that in my contract? Like the wizard drugs?” Ashe teased.

“Ashe.” Thog said in a warning tone.

“My lips are sealed, you have my word.” After a moment of silence, she spoke up again, “I have an idea, I think it'll relax you for sure!”

“Okay?” Thog didn't have to wonder long what she meant. He felt a spark of electricity on his back, like when she healed him. “What are you doing? I thought you wanted to use that weird spirit mumbo jumbo less.”

“Oh don't worry, I haven't used my allotted amount yet today.” Ashe continued to send small sparks across his back. He could feel his muscles all start to relax. It was so pleasant in fact, he leaned over and put his head down on the bar. Ashe started humming again. It sounded a bit like a lullaby. His eyes started to feel heavy, and before he could realize what had happened, he had passed out.

…

 

When Thog’s eyes flickered open, he was in a much darker place than he remembered. And there was a mattress under him? This was his bedroom! How had he gotten there? The last thing he recalled was Ashe giving him a massage…

Oh no. Had she carried him here? He'd never live that down. She would tease him for the rest of his life. He groaned slightly.

The sun had not yet risen, and the sky Thog could see from his window was still pitch black. He wavered between getting up and just going back to sleep when he noticed that he wasn't alone. There was someone next to him on his mattress. 

Ashe was curled up beside him, facing away from him, her breathing slow and steady. That settled that then. Thog settled back into bed, and slowly pulled Ashe closer to him, so he wouldn't wake her up. She gave a soft snore, but otherwise didn't wake. Thog placed his head on top of hers, his arm curled around her waist. She was so warm next to him, warm and soft and lovely. He couldn't help but to smile, for about the hundredth time that night.

Just before falling back into sleep, he softly whispered into Ashe’s fluffy hair, “Thank you.”


End file.
